Stolen Souls
by clarkewinchester
Summary: Is it possible for your whole life to be turned upside down with one single dream? Starla knows the answer to this all too well when she awakens from a nightmare that is far too real for her liking! With her best friend Rian by her side they set off to fight it only to realise that Dean and Sam were ready to hunt as well! Can she trust Dean with her life or will this be her end?
1. Chapter 1

The darkness was unbearable. I couldn't see anything, I couldn't feel anything. The only sound was the pounding of my own heart. There was no way I could fight it. No exit, no way out. Then I saw him, a dark, tall masculine figure stood fixed right in front of me. His black eyes were like pits that were about to suck me in and take me away. A strangled scream escaped my throat and that is when I woke up. A pool of sweat surrounded me and I gasped for as much air as I could. Checking my alarm clock, I realised it was 4am and there was no way I would be getting back to sleep now.

Forcing myself out of the sweat dampened bed; I dragged myself out of my bedroom and down the corridor to go downstairs. My head quietly poked round the door of my parent's dull room to see that they were in a deep sleep that was free from any nightmares- unlike mine.

"Starla, why are you awake?" the innocent voice of Mylo came from behind me and a gentle smile made its way across my face.

"Hey little bro," I whispered, "I couldn't sleep that's all!"

"I heard you scream and I'm not little anymore, I am 8 now!"

"Well I'm 23 so you are little to me! I just had a dream!" I tried to erase the image of the pit eyed man in front of me from my brain but it wouldn't go anywhere. I knew 23 was a fairly old age to still live with your family but after Mylo was born prematurely and my mother went through a phase of not coping, I felt as though the safety of my family was in my hands. Plus, the nearest housing up for sale around here was miles away!

"Ok, I'm going back to bed now, goodnight Starla," Mylo rubbed a tiny hand across his left eye and turned to walk to bed.

"Sweet dreams Mylo." I whispered and carried on my walk down the stairs to the kitchen.

I always liked waking up early, seeing the world awake after I did but today was different. I couldn't stop thinking about that man. He wasn't human; he wasn't like anything I have ever seen before. Sure I have read books and seen pictures of things like him but not ever as vivid and horrifying as him. It was just a dream; it was just a dream- so why am I still thinking about it? Finishing the last of my water, I headed to the living room to see if I could get my mind off of it all. The moonlight shone in from the window of our small, cosy house and I couldn't help but wonder what else lurked in the dark that nobody had ever seen before. Shaking the thought out of my mind, I wandered into the living room and flopped down on the ancient sofa we had kept in the family for years. I felt colder in this room, like the temperature had suddenly dropped. A shiver made its way up my spine and I felt a sense of unease. Suddenly, the photo frames that lined our windowsill dropped one by one onto the wooden floor beneath. I whipped my head around to the sound of the radio playing my favourite song of '_We come running' _but it changed to a crackling sound and one word being repeated over and over again- "Starla, Starla, Starla, Starla"!

I had to get out, I had to escape! But then the door shut and there was no way I could leave. My breathing became fast and my heart was about to burst out of my chest. I could fight this, whatever it is I can fight it.

"Let me out! Help me someone!" My fists fought against the wooden door trying to free my body but they were useless.

"Get me out! Get me out! Get me out!" My feet tried their best with the most powerful kicks I had but they were no use either.

Then my dad came rushing through the door and I collapsed into his arms, tears streaming down my face.

The morning came too slowly and I woke to the smell of toast in the kitchen. I had spent what was left of the night on the sofa and I slept the best I had slept in a while. The radio that had terrified me last night was showing the time to be 7:30am so I quickly got up and walked to the kitchen.

I was greeted by the concerned faces of my mum, dad and brother who tried their best to hide it with loving smiles. Replying with a smile was the best I could do.

"How are you Pepper?" My dad questioned as he placed his newspaper on the table and looked up at me. The newspaper had its daily remembrance of all the people that died in the war and it had a classic reminder of exactly what happened. I hated how they acted as though the people knew it was going to happen and they were sacrificing what they had for 'the greater good'.

"I'm fine honestly but I have to go somewhere. I don't know when I will be back so don't worry about saving me any dinner!"

"After what happened last night do you really think we are willing to let you go out on your own?" My mum turned around from the cooker to ask.

"Well I'm 23 now and I can do what I like!" I answered a little too harsh than I wanted it to be.

"Don't speak to your mum like that! You still live under this roof so you respect what your mother says!" My father furrowed his brows until they knotted together and stared at me.

"Look I'm sorry but I really have to do something so I will see you later," I gave a nod to all of them and made my way upstairs to get changed.

After dressing in a simple outfit of black jeans and a white t-shirt with a blue hoodie, I grabbed my bag and left the doors of my home.

The outside air was fresh and cool as I headed in the direction I intended. We had lived in Lawrence since I was born because it was one of the only places that survived the war. Not that we hadn't had our fair share of problems, but we were lucky to live here and everyone had to know that. Kansas had always been a place of safety to me but after last night I wasn't so sure.

It had been around an hour since I had first started walking and in that time I had gone to the shop to grab some food and walked around as much as I knew of Lawrence. Everything seemed normal, like last night was some kind of crazy breakdown but I didn't believe that I was that weak.

Then I saw him. From the corner of my eye at first but it was the clearest picture I saw. Stood across the road from me was the man from last night, the man that made me so scared I was weak. I didn't know what to do. I scanned the streets looking for a way to run. My eyes opened wide. My heart was about to burst out of my chest. I ran. Passing as many people as I could, looking back every few seconds to see where he was. But that was a bad idea… I crashed into a person in front of me and it brought me back to the reality of Lawrence.

"Woah, slow down sparky! You almost pushed me over!" The boy was probably the best boy I could crash into as it turned out to be my best friend Rian. I had known him for 8 years now and we got on like siblings.

"Oh… sorry… I was just trying to…" I turned back to see where the man had gone but he was nowhere I could see.

"Are you alright there?" He looked slightly concerned even though I hadn't told him anything yet.

"Um… I'm not so sure!" I finally took a deep breath and looked into his deep blue eyes that searched my face for a reason why I was so scared.

"Well, come with me, I will take you to this little place I know and you can tell me all about it! You don't look like the Starla I know" He felt so safe to be around and he always told me I could trust him with anything.

"Okay… thanks Rian!" I followed him down this small pathway that I hadn't seen before.

"Don't worry about it Sparky!" He smiled again and carried on down the path.

"Um… it's Starla not Sparky," I replied as I jumped over a few bricks that had fallen on the floor.

"Come on I haven't got all day!" He skipped the question and broke into a jog with a smug grin on his face.

I just shook my head and ran to catch up with him; this guy was as stubborn as me!

We soon reached the place he couldn't wait to show me, but from the outside I wasn't as amazed as I thought.

"Don't worry it gets better on the inside!" He grabbed my hand and pulled me through the fence that lined the gardens.

He twisted down a few more corners until he reached his destination and sighed at the view.

"So, what do you think?"

I turned around to see row after row of intricate sculptures of all different sizes. They had grown old over time and had lost shape after the war but were so detailed and beautiful they took my breath away.

"This is amazing!" I gasped as I tried to take in the sight of what was in front of me.

"Well I'm glad you like it!" He smiled and began to stroll past all of the different sculptures.

I followed him and took a look at each of the models around me. A rusty, ancient sign lay at the bottom of one of the sculptures that read "_Downtown Lawrence Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit_" and I lifted it to blow away some of the dust that had gathered around the edges.

"How old is this place?" I questioned as I glanced over at Rian who was looking up at one of the larger sculptures.

"Probably around since the 20th Century!" Rian replied as he walked over to meet me.

"The 20th century? That means it's like 100 years old!" I exclaimed as I placed the sign back into its original place and carried on walking.

We walked for a while in silence before Rian came to a stop and led me over to a patch of grass nearby.

"I think we have missed the point in us coming here," He said as he lay his jacket on the grass for us to sit on, "Why were you running earlier?"

"You really wouldn't understand!" I sighed at the thought of the darkness I had in my life, not all of it was green grass and sculptures.

"I think you would be surprised at the amount of things I have seen in my time!" He laughed slightly and shook his head at the thought.

I looked at him with confusion and interest about his life, "Okay, well it started last night…" I told him everything about the man and the dream and the radio until I paused and realised there was nothing else I knew.

"Oh my gosh… you saw him…" Rian looked annoyed but upset as he tried to avoid making eye contact.

"What? Do you know him?" I couldn't believe what was happening. Had the same thing happened to him? Did he know how to stop it?

"You could say that..." He turned to face me and took a deep breath, "He is my dad…"

My eyes widened and stared right at him, he was the son of the man with the pit eyes and the horrible face, him? The boy I trusted most, the boy I could always rely on?

"Yeah, he is my dad. I never knew it was you he was haunting, honestly!"

"Wait, you knew he was haunting someone?" I didn't understand, how did he know?

"Well yeah, but I didn't know it was you!" He had a hint of hope in his voice as though he thought I would understand.

"How could you do that? I don't even care if it is me! He could have been torturing any innocent person and you just stood by and watched!" I quickly shot up and shook my head in disgust before walking away without looking back.


	2. Chapter 2

My mind swirled with what I had just been told. Rian knew what his 'dad' was doing and he was prepared to not do anything about it! How could he?

I couldn't go home tonight; I couldn't face explaining this to my parents and Mylo. So, I turned in to a small motel on the side of the road and hoped to get a cheap room for the night, on my own.

The man behind the counter was middle aged and had grey, short hair that looked wiry on his pale head.

"How can I help you?" His deep voice was croaky and he tried his best to look awake.

"Just a room for the night please… for one," I looked down at the thought of Rian and how I had just left him there.

"Of course love," He leant over and gave me a rusty key, "Room 100 and don't worry about the payment- you look like you've had one hell of a day!"

I smiled at the gesture, "You could say that but thank you!"

I pushed my bag further onto my shoulder and left the reception to go and find my room in the now torrential rain. Pulling up my hood I began to walk to the building where my room was.

Inside it was still cool and not a lot cleaner than the reception but I didn't mind and walked into the lift to go up to room 100. Thankfully, the lift was empty and I pressed the button that lit up in a bright light. I let out a sigh and watched the door begin to shut when it was suddenly stopped by a manly hand that pushed it open and climbed inside as well. I glanced up at the man and realised that it was my worst nightmare right in front of me… not the man haunting me but his son!

"Starla…" Rian looked relieved as he stared at my face like he hadn't seen it in years.

"Did you follow me here?" My voice was harsh and cold like the air around me.

"No, I just needed a room for the night!" He looked hurt and upset by what I had said but I wasn't anywhere near to feeling sorry for him.

"Well, just stay away from me!" With that I turned my head away from him so I wasn't tempted to look into those deep blue eyes.

"Starla let me explain…" He still sounded weak and pathetic when he spoke.

"NO! Don't even begin to try and make me feel sorry for you! You were happy to go along and let an innocent person suffer because of your father but when you found out it was me things suddenly changed for you! How could you?" My face was red with fury and I clenched my fists to stop them from shaking.

"It wasn't like that! When I saw you, I was just leaving my house after he told me! I didn't know what to think!" He tried to grab for my hand but stopped himself when he saw my fists.

"So what, is your dad some kind of psycho?" I questioned, trying to find an answer to all of this.

"He isn't my father!" Rian whispered and looked down at his feet with tears in his eyes.

"What? Make up your mind- first he is your father and then he isn't, first you don't want to do anything about it and now you do!" I exclaimed angrily at the thought of him lying.

"He is my father but not the one I used to know! Not the one that took me to the park every Saturday to play football or the dad that helped me with my homework. He is a demon!" He spat out the last word and we both stood there as though the word was floating in front of us but neither of us understood it.

"Rian… a demon… I can't believe it, I'm so sorry"

"Hey don't do that Sparky, you don't need to apologise, I do!"

I pressed my finger to his lips and pulled him in to a big hug. I smiled slightly at the warmth of his body and the smell that he brought with him.

Then, just on time, the lift door opened and we walked happily to our rooms.

I spent the remainder of the evening in his room and we spoke about everything- his family, my family, our lives, our mistakes and soon enough I felt like everything that had happened today was forgotten.

"It's getting late; I should go to my room!" I checked the time and stood up from the bed I had been perched on.

"Yeah, okay, I will see you in the morning!" Rian still had a hint of sadness in his voice as he walked me to the door.

Just as I was walking out I turned to face him and looked deeply into his eyes.

"We can fight this, together; we can help your dad and bring him back. I promise you!" I squeezed his hand reassuringly and nodded.

"I hope you're right!"

"I do too! Good night Rian!"

"Good night Sparky!" He leant down and planted a small kiss on the top of my forehead.

Maybe tonight I could be free from a nightmare!

My heart was pounding heavily and my head searched the old ruins of the warehouse for a way to go. I screamed and tried to run but my feet wouldn't move fast enough and he caught up with me.

"Stay away from him Starla; we don't want things to get worse do we?" He turned his head from side to side as he spoke and I heard it click with age.

"Get away from me!" I shouted and tried to turn away but he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back.

"Starla, I could make things very difficult for you. Now stay away from my son or we will have problems!"

"I'm not afraid! I can fight this," I screamed at the top of my lungs, "RIAN!"

Suddenly, I woke up and looked around the room, breathing hastily. I waited for Rian but there was nothing so I ran to his room and knocked on it quickly.

He opened the door with a concerned look on his face.

"Sparky, what are you doing here?" He asked and brought me into his room calmly.

"Sorry, I shouted for you but you didn't hear me so I had to come and find you" I replied, shivering.

"It's okay, I'm here now! Do you want to stay here?" He rubbed my arms that were layered with goose-bumps from the cold.

"I won't be able to sleep, not now!" I shook my head and looked down.

"Okay, I have the perfect place!" With that he swung me up into his arms and walked me out of the room with my hands held across my small frame.

Fortunately, I had worn my t-shirt and jeans to bed because I didn't have any pyjamas but the fresh air still brought a chill to my skin.

We walked silently down empty roads and through abandoned fields before we reached the place he wanted to take me to.

"Here it is Sparky! Kansas Theme Park!" He exaggerated a spin to show off the new find of his.

It looked like it hadn't been used in years and my hands brushed against the freezing metal of the gates at the front.

"Well what are we waiting for?" I smiled and stepped through and into the park.

There were quite a few things that would've been rides there including a Ferris wheel, a big boat shaped ride and some spinning cups. However, the one that caught my eye was a swirling, twisting rollercoaster that was the biggest one around.

"Rian look at this!" I dragged him behind me as I went to get a closer look at the intriguing ride.

Without any hesitation and with a crazed look from Rian, I started to venture into the ride and jumped over the gate that was blocking the way. From the looks of things, there were two different carts that went around the track and each of them had 8 seats. One of the carts would have been a bright, vibrant green but it had faded over time and was now a rusty colour. It smelt of laughter and screams that would've once filled the whole park but now they just echoed from the empty space around.

I carried on through the shelter where the ride started and hopped over to the other side to see what Rian was doing. To my surprise, he was still staring at me with his arms folded and a smile on his face.

"Are you just going to stand there staring or are you going to come with me?" I placed my hands on my hips and tilted my head to the side.

"Alright fine Sparky, but if this thing breaks from beneath us, it is all on you! He jumped inside with one swift movement and jogged over to me.

"Rian, how amazing would it be to have one of these now?" I spun around and took in the sight of the whole park from where I was standing.

Rian just stood there with a smile on his face that wasn't smug like before but it was of pure interest and care for the girl in front of him.

"Oh my gosh! Come here!" I pulled Rian again to come with me up the steep climb of the beginning of the track and up to the top where the second of the carts was sat peacefully.

Finally, after we had climbed the first part, we reached the anciently faded pink cart that sat at the highest point of the whole thing. I sat down at the front and Rian hopped into the one next to me.

"Rian, how can our life change so suddenly?" I furrowed my eyebrows together and thought about all of the people in this world living innocent lives without any darkness- unlike mine.

Rian shook his head slowly as though he was just realising it himself and reached out for my hand, which he wove together with his.

I took in a deep breath and looked at him to find that he was staring right back into my eyes.

"Why does this world have to be so complicated?" I asked but even I was puzzled at the answer.

"Because if it wasn't then everything would be boring!" He smiled trying to make me feel better.

I looked longingly up to the stars above, "I wish it would all just stop. Go back to the time when I was just normal and I could live like a normal 23 year old.

Rian raised his eyebrows and shrugged his shoulders not really knowing what to say.

"Sometimes I just want to be out of this world, this everything. I want to go back in time and never go to sleep that night- never go back to sleep now!"

"I would rather have this life with you than another life with someone else…" Rian searched my eyes as he said it and grinned, he always went soppy on me!

"Shut up Rian!" I pushed him away, smiling and looked up to the stars of the night.

Maybe we are living a hard life where we can't change what happened in the past but right now all I needed was the boy next to me and I could call it a good life. Even if I knew things lurked in the dark that were beyond my wildest thoughts…


	3. Chapter 3

We stayed there for what felt like half an hour but turned out to be three whole hours. We barely spoke, just looked at the stars and thought about everything. I couldn't understand what had happened over the past few days- I had had the most horrifying nightmares, I had realised that demons were real; I had left my family and been to the most stunning places. Before now, nothing like this had ever happened to me before and suddenly it was all happening at once!  
"Sparky, it is nearly morning, we should get back!" Rian broke the silence calmly and got up to stretch.  
"Yeah sure," I replied before doing the same and shivering at the cold.  
Rian immediately noticed, "Here take my jacket," He declared before throwing his denim jacket round my shoulders and gently rubbing my arms.  
His jacket was warm and soft but it had aged with time which made it even more special. Rian grabbed my hand and tried to help me down the track but I shrugged him off and carried on myself.  
"I think I'm more than capable!" I smiled as I brushed off my jeans.  
"Just trying to help out my Sparky!" Rian exclaimed as he ran a hand through his hair and set off in front.  
"Oh so you're in a mood now?" I jogged to catch up.  
"No I just want to get home. It's cold and I just gave you my jacket!" He exaggerated a shudder and pulled to a stop.  
"Fine, have it back!" I threw the jacket at his face, "I don't need it!"  
Rian laughed gently and pulled the jacket off his face, "Now who's in a mood?"  
I gave him a disgusted look and grinned as I began to sprint off towards the hotel.  
"You little…" Rian shouted before running after me.

We ran the whole way back and my legs burned but I didn't care. It was as though I was running from everything bad that was going on and instead I was running to the good things. My lungs were on fire but I never stopped until we reached the motel door and crashed through with laughter erupting from us.  
+++

No, not again. It was happening again. I was in the same place as before but I couldn't see him. I took in the whole warehouse. On the left side, there were narrow stairs that led right to the top and didn't look very steady. On the right of me, there were a dozen filing cabinets that seemed like they were bulging with information. Where was I?  
I turned my body to look out of the yellowing window that was my only source of light. But the light wasn't natural light, like the moon or the sun. Instead it was a huge flashing sign that read "LINCOLN, NEBRASKA". That's where I was! This man, he was in Nebraska and he was showing me by sending me here in my dreams. Yet, why wasn't he here in this one?  
Then I heard it, a smashing glass from a few meters behind me. He was there!  
I lifted up a cricket bat from the table nearby and prepared myself for his entrance. Getting closer and closer to the door, I recognised his shadow and waited. I focused on keeping my breathing quiet and I clenched my hands tighter around the bat.  
I must've gripped too tight and I shot right awake. This had become such a regular thing that it didn't even scare me anymore. I knew exactly what I had to do. I threw on my hoodie and walked down the pathway that linked all the rooms, to Rian's room at the end of the corridor. I knocked lightly because I knew he would wake up at any noise and he was automatically at the door to greet me.  
"What happened this time?" He questioned calmly as he led me over to the edge of his bed.  
"I… saw more this time. I was in the same warehouse but it was in Nebraska. He was there again, he didn't see me but he was there!" I shuddered as I replayed the whole thing in my mind. I could feel the terror I felt and I could see his shadow again.  
"Well, that's a good thing then! We could go there and see if…" Rian started to go off at all the different things that we could find there but I couldn't do that.  
"Not without seeing my family. I can't just leave them!" I stated harshly, I wasn't going to just leave with Rian without them knowing where I was.  
"We don't have the time Starla!"  
"Then we will make the time!"  
"What do you expect me to do?" Rian asked as he knotted his brows together and stared at me.  
"I don't care what you do but I am going to find my family and explain this!" With that I shot up and left his room, slamming the door behind me. I heard him wince at the door but I wasn't turning round. Before I did anything I would find mum, dad and Mylo before it was too late.  
+++

The familiar sight of my house was enough to make me smile and I walked up the path to the pale white door I had been through so many times but never been through to say goodbye to my family.  
I walked in, expecting to find the house asleep but the glowing light of the TV was coming from the living room. I knew it would be my Dad; he regularly got up in the middle of the night to watch the remembrance programme that showed footage from the time of the war and paid tribute to the fallen.  
As I walked through the living room door I smiled as I realised that my suspicions had been correct.  
"Dad…" Before I could say anything else he shot up and spun round at the sound of my voice.  
"Starla, where have you been?" My dad pulled me into a warm embrace and stroked my hair.  
"I'm fine Dad; I just had stuff to sort out after the other night!" I pulled back gently and smiled at the relieved look on his face.  
"Okay, your mother told me you would be fine but when I thought about what happened to you I…" He shook his head to erase the thought just like I had done these past few days.  
"Dad, trust me, I'm fine! I'm going upstairs to see Mylo and Mum!" I nodded and left the living room to walk up the wooden stairs and into my brother's room.

His room was a green colour with images and drawings of jungle animals covering the walls. I laughed at the memory of the day we decorated it and made a complete mess.  
As always, Mylo woke up at the sound of someone coming into his room and the surprised look on his face made me realise just how worried must've been.  
"Starla, you're back!" He rubbed his eye with the back of his hand and pushed himself up to sit.  
I grasped his little body and held it close to mine, he was warm and I never wanted to let him go.  
I let him go and we lay down in his bed looking around at the walls of his room.  
"Do you remember when we painted this?" I asked him as I stared at all of the work we put into finishing his room.  
"Yeah, we made a right mess! It took you ages to draw all those tigers and lions and monkeys!" He giggled as his little hand brushed his favourite drawing of a baby tiger that sat in the middle of a colourful jungle.  
"Mylo, I love you okay? I might not always say it but I love you!" I held his other hand tightly and planted a kiss on his palm.  
"What have you done? Where are you going?" He whispered with a flare of worry in his voice.  
"What are you…?" But I couldn't finish it, I couldn't lie to him, "Okay, you can't tell anyone alright?" I questioned as I sat up and leant against the wall that was next to his bed.  
"Yeah of course, you can trust me!" He propped himself up next to me and stared into my eyes.  
"So for the past few days, I have been having these… these dreams and this man is always in them. So I had to leave before because I wanted to find out who he was. When I was away, I met this boy called Rian and he can help me. So tomorrow we are hopefully going to Nebraska to go and find this man!" I explained, never losing contact with his eyes.  
"I'm coming with you!" Mylo exclaimed as he jumped out of his bed and grabbed his bag from the floor, "Let me just pack my stuff,"  
"Mylo you can't! It isn't safe for you!" I held his arm back to stop him from packing.  
"Starla I have to, just tell mum and dad we are going on a trip to the zoo for the weekend. I want to help you!" He shook his arm away and turned to face me.  
"You are a little…" I grinned as I ruffled his hair, "I will keep you safe, I promise. Rian won't let anything happen to you as well.  
"Let's do this!" He lifted his hand to high five me and us started tickling his stomach as I lifted him up to swing him round.  
His laughter filled the room and it nearly took away the fact that tomorrow we were going to fight something so deadly, it could kill us all.


	4. Chapter 4

The night went past fairly slowly with me waking up my family to explain why I had been away. Mylo came up with the idea that I left because I wanted to plan a holiday with him and we would be leaving tomorrow. It wasn't the best idea but it was understandable considering what I had put him through the other night. My mum was easier to convince than my dad and she said it would be good bonding time but dad wasn't so sure.

"I can't let you just leave without telling us where you're going!" Dad exclaimed as he stopped pacing and held his hands on the back of one of the chairs.

"Well it is sort of like a road trip so we will be everywhere!" I cheerfully grinned and squeezed Mylo's hand; he was also sat with a smile of his face.

"Alright then but how do we get hold of you? Are you taking a phone?" My dad questioned worriedly.

"Yes I will have my phone dad. Now if this is all okay, Mylo and I need to start packing. We are leaving at six!" I stood up with Mylo and noticed that the time was half past five.

Rian was probably expecting that I would never come back but I would make sure of it.

We packed lightly after a lot of explaining to Mylo and by six we were ready to set off. Downstairs, mum and dad had prepared us some food so we ended up with crisps, chocolate, fruit and plenty of drink.

Mylo and I hurriedly said our goodbyes and set off outside to get to the hotel where I hoped we would find Rian. I couldn't think of another place he would stay and I certainly hoped he hadn't ventured off into Nebraska to try and find his dad by himself. No matter how much I got annoyed at him or he lost his nerve with me, I always knew that my dad would be there if I needed him but Rian was going through hell without his dad. I couldn't possibly imagine how he felt but I knew that when he finally came to face him, I would be right by his side ready to fight as well.

The motel seemed fairly empty and we rushed to get up to Rian's room as quickly as we could.

Once there I knocked lightly but Mylo made an extra effort to knock as loudly as he could to make sure Rian heard us. To our luck he did and the door swung open to show us the boy who put a smile on my face dressed in his denim jacket and jeans.

"Thank the lord you're here Rian!" I pulled him into a hug and smiled at the old smell of his jacket.

"I was just coming to find you, where have you…" Before he could finish, he noticed Mylo standing next to me with an exaggerated grin on his face, "Um… who's this?"

"I'm Mylo, nice to meet you!" Mylo chirped as he held out his hand for Rian to shake.

"Sorry, he's my brother and he insisted that he would come with us!" I ruffled my brother's hair and smiled at him.

"Come with us to where?" Rian asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"To Nebraska, to find your dad!" I declared.

"But I thought you said that you wouldn't leave your parents, that you could get yourself killed?!" Rian questioned again still not sure what was going on.

"Well I spoke to them yesterday and they think we are going on a trip together so come on, we haven't got all day!"

Rian looked startled and didn't say anything as he grabbed his keys and some sort of bag he had lying on his bed.

We reached his car and Mylo clambered into the back whilst I hopped into the passenger seat to wait for Rian.

He returned from the boot quickly and slid into the seat next to me, his face looked stern and serious but he tried his best to give me a quick smile before starting the car.

"What was that?" I questioned with my eyebrows raised and my arms folded across my chest.

"What are you talking about?" Rian replied as though he had no clue what I was talking about.

"That bag you just put in the car, what is in it?"

"Well, when you went off to tell your parents I got in touch with some friends and asked them if they could give me a few things to help us hunt this demon. They gave me everything they said we would need and there is quite a lot in there, enough for all three of us!" Rian answered and turned to ruffle Mylo's hair.

"Wait, you knew I would come back?" I asked puzzled at the thought that he never expected me to leave.

"You think I'm too good looking to just leave me!" He shrugged with a smug grin on his face.

I just shook my head and punched his shoulder before we set off to go and find this demon that was taking the body of his dad.

Once we had reached Nebraska, we stopped off at a small café where Rian had planned to meet his friends, who had given him the bag, so that we could talk about a plan.

The café was small and rustic with a name of '_Blake's_' and it was fairly empty apart from a few couples.

I walked over to the counter and ordered two coffees and a juice with a chocolate chip muffin for Mylo.

After paying the man behind the counter I found that Rian and Mylo were sitting at one of the bigger tables and were playing with a few of the toy cars Mylo decided to bring. They were in his bag with a few tennis balls, a photo of our family and a pair of radios in case we lost each other.

"Boys, come on! We need to meet these people and get out of here!" I exclaimed as I sat down and passed out the drinks.

"Don't worry Starla, we will be fine!" Mylo chirped as he collided with Rian's car and made an exaggerated crash sound.

"Oh look, here they are!" Rian pointed out the window to two men stepping out of a _Chevrolet Impala _and walking up the path towards the café.

One of the boys who looked about my age was fairly muscly with blondish- brown hair and dark green eyes. He wore a leather jacket and a pair of dark blue jeans. The other boy looked younger than the first with he had brown, long hair with brown eyes and he was holding a laptop in his hand.

They both walked through the café and scanned to find our table where I had already pulled up two chairs next to me.

"Hey! Rian, how are you?" The elder boy exclaimed before grasping Rian into a manly hug and sitting down on the seat next to me.

"Hey boys, this is Starla and Mylo," Rian smiled and gestured towards me and my brother, "Starla, these two are Dean and Sam!"

The younger one, who I now knew as Sam, politely nodded and sat down next to Dean.

"So, I hear you have some trouble with a demon, what's going on?" Dean questioned and rested his arms on the now full table.

"Nightmares, seeing him in the street, I can't seem to get away from him!" I repeated the goings on of the past few days to these two boys I hadn't even met before.

"Okay, sounds like we have a case Sammy! Well, stay safe for the next day or so and we will come back to you when we have any news!" Dean replied and patted Sam on the back roughly.

"Excuse me?" I yelled only to receive every pair of eyes in the cafe on me.

"What? You can't fight this!" Dean stated as he took a sip from my un-touched coffee.

"Yes I can, I am the one that has had to deal with it, I think I can be the one to get rid of it!" I replied harshly as I glared into his dark eyes.

"Do you really think you can just kill a demon? And with a small child?" He gestured towards Mylo and let out a laugh.

"Why else would you give Rian that stuff?" I smirked.

"What stuff?" Dean questioned and turned his stare towards Rian.

"Oh yeah, Dean about that… I thought the guy needed some help so…" Sam started, trying to make it sound better than it was.

"What the hell Sam? You don't just give people stuff like that so they think they are prepared to fight a demon!" Dean pushed Sam roughly, causing him to stumble on his chair and almost fall back.

"Look, I am the only one here who knows where this thing is, I am the only one who knows what he has said to me, and don't you think that counts as a reason for me hunting this?" I was almost pleading with him to let me go as though I was a little child.

"Alright, you can come but there is one thing, I don't take kids on hunts!" Dean said bluntly as he looked over to Mylo who seemed to be cowering away from the large man sat across from him.

"Where is he meant to go?" I asked bewildered as to what the answer would possibly be.

"Okay, you can come with me and Sam but Rian and Mylo can stay back and we can meet them after, okay?" Dean explained simply as he stretched up and sat back in his chair.

"Okay, Rian you better take care of him!" I stated with a hint of laughter in my voice. I knew Rian would make it his first priority to look after Mylo.

"What else would you expect of me?" Rian faked a hurt look on his face and the table let out a small laugh.

However, Dean sat there with a concerned look on his face that was clearly aimed at me. I turned toward him and reassuringly nodded to tell him I could survive this.

He didn't look so sure.


	5. Chapter 5

The night came pretty quickly after our meeting at the café and we found a cheap motel to set up base ready for our hunt.

Rian, Mylo and Sam had gone out to find food so it was just Dean and I left in the room. I tried to busy myself with looking through the bag Mylo brought but I could feel his glare on me with every move I made.

"Why do you keep looking at me like that?" I finally gave in and asked as I sat on the edge of the bed opposite his.

"I'm not so sure you are as confident as you seem. This is scaring you but you don't want to admit it!" Dean folded his arms and lay back against the board of the bed.

It was weird that he could tell how I was feeling even though I had only met him today. Not even Rian could tell that and he was supposed to be my best friend.

"How did you know that?" I turned my head as though I could find the answer if I looked at him from another angle but it didn't work.

"Because I know how you feel, I have been there before and it is scary!" Dean stood and walked over to sit beside me.

"What, to the warehouse?" I joked with a smile on my face.

"Come on, I'm serious! You are being haunted and it can be scary! You feel alone, afraid and you need someone there! At least you have Rian though!" He reassured and moved to sit comfortably next to me.

"Maybe he isn't there as much as I need him!" I admitted quietly and looked down at my hands that were placed in my lap.

"What do you mean?" Dean realised I was upset and softened his tone slightly.

"He is great but since it is his dad, I feel like I can't talk to him and… never mind, you don't need to hear this crap!" I smiled and turned to the bathroom to wash my face. Dean stayed silent for a while until he found something to say.

"You've got me!" He shouted from across the room and I could feel how true he was being.

I may have only just met him but I knew that it wasn't a lie.

The rest of the boys came back pretty quickly with a Chinese takeaway from a few blocks away.

I grabbed the bags from them and put them onto the counter to plate up for the five of us but soon enough I was greeted by Dean who began to help as well.

"Hey, I just wanted to say thanks for earlier!" I stated as I continued to take the tin boxes out of the bag and onto the counter next to me.

"Don't worry about it; I'm here if you need me!" Dean replied as though it wasn't the nicest thing he had ever said to me.

"Oh Dean, don't get all soppy on me!" I slightly pouted my bottom lip and raised my eyebrows at him.

With nothing to say he just shoved me backwards and began a fight. I hit his arm and he lifted me up in a fireman carry easily.

"I will only put you down if you promise to forget it!" Dean shouted above my screams and laughter.

"Okay, okay I promise!" I stopped kicking and he slowly dropped my down until I was eye level with him.

We stayed looking at each other with his hands lifting me up for longer than we should've…

"Oh, um I will just get out the plates if you start opening those!" I hopped down and began opening the cupboards in the search for plates.

I could feel my cheeks becoming slightly red and I rested my head against the open door of one of the cupboards. That was awkward!

We ate dinner quickly with Dean messing around with Mylo and Sam looking through his laptop. Rian came over to me and sat beside me with half a plate of food left.

"You okay Sparky?" Rian asked as he shovelled another forkful of food into his mouth.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just thinking about tonight!" I tried my best to give him a smile and swallowed my food again.

"Do you really think you should be going?" Rian questioned seriously.

"Yeah, of course I should. This is my battle and I want to finish it!"

"Starla, he is my dad! Don't you think he had some reason for doing all of this?" Rian stated firmly.

"There is no reason for him to do this… unless you know he has a reason… do you know something?" It didn't work that Rian would know why his dad was doing this unless he had spoken to him.

"Sparky, I was going to tell you but I knew you would get upset and I only spoke to him twice and…" He tried to grab for my arm but I pulled it away and dropped my fork onto the plate.

"No don't even start! How could you not tell me? Oh wait I forgot, you didn't tell me about your dad before did you? And I was the one that was stupid enough to forgive you; I guess that was a mistake Rian!" I spat his name out, disgusted, and stood up, leaving my plate next to him.

"Starla please listen," Rian pleaded pathetically as I walked out of the room and away from him.

I didn't have a destination but I didn't care. This was all too familiar to me after what happened in the sculpture park and I made the mistake of forgiving him then, I would not make that mistake again. I didn't know all the facts about what happened with his dad but it was enough to know he hadn't told me and it was enough to say I didn't want to see him again.

I soon reached an open all night coffee shop and sat down at one of the seats near the window. I couldn't understand what reason Rian would have for going to see his dad without me and then not even telling me he was going. The boy I was prepared to trust with my life had completely let me down.

I was all alone in the coffee shop but the door soon opened with the sound of the bell ringing and a familiar face walked through. However, to my surprise it was not Rian but instead it was Dean and he looked relieved when he saw me.

"There you are!" He exclaimed as he pulled up a chair to sit next to me.

"Did you follow me here?" I asked with croaky voice.

"No, I just drove from the hotel until I found the nearest open place where you would be able to sit!" He replied with a smile even though he was still concerned.

I cleared my throat and smiled back, "You didn't have to come Dean!"

"Oh, don't flatter yourself! I didn't come to see if you were okay, I came to tell you to get back to the hotel so we can go on this damn hunt!"

"Yeah, we should go! He will be there now, it is dark! But, I can't leave Rian with my brother, I can't trust him now!" I stood up and shifted past the table to leave.

"No, we won't Sam is going to drive us there with Mylo and wait outside, if anything bad happens he can come in to help okay?" Dean followed me outside and unlocked his antique car.

"Yeah that sounds okay! Come on Dean, we have a demon to hunt!" I exclaimed as I climbed into the car myself and heard the familiar sound of "_Eye of the tiger_" booming loudly on the radio.

I glanced across to Dean who was mouthing all the words and tapping his hand to the beat on his worn steering wheel. A laugh escaped my lips which caused him to turn up the music even more and drive off quickly.

We arrived at the hotel with my sides hurting from laughing so much and Dean drenched in the water from my bottle that was thrown at him when he punched my arm. I had almost forgotten about what happened with Rian but it wasn't fully gone and I don't think it ever will. He better have a damn good explanation if he ever wanted me to consider forgiving him.

The hotel door was open and we could see the light glowing through as Sam carried Mylo outside to see if we were coming. As the car pulled up, I saw Sam point towards our car and Mylo wriggle free of his grasp to run up to me.

I stepped out of the car and was immediately taken aback by the embrace my little brother pulled me into. I smiled and kissed his forehead lightly.

"Don't worry about Rian, I told him to never come near you again!" Mylo furrowed his eyebrows and wriggled his nose up in disgust.

"Thanks Mylo, you ready to go on an adventure?" I exclaimed happily.

"YEP! Let's go kill this demon!" I could tell he had got the phrase from Dean and quickly shot him a glance from across the car, only to receive a shrug and a smirk!

Sam jogged over to meet us and took the keys from Dean before jumping into the driver's seat and starting the engine.

The rest of us jumped in with Dean and Mylo in the back and me in the front.

During the drive, we created a system of filling the guns with salt. I got the guns and opened the barrel, then I passed it to Mylo and he pushed in the salt which was then passed to Dean to check and put in the bag.

The guns accompanied silver knives, much more salt, an old-looking book and some other little things that I had never really seen before.

"Come on, let's put on some music!" Dean shouted as he threw the remainder of weapons into the bag and adjusted himself in the car.

I grinned and started looking through a box that contained old cassette tapes that looked worn and old. My eyes landed on one titled "_Dean_" and I figured it would be the best one to choose as I pushed it into the radio and turned up the volume.

Sam turned to me with an annoyed expression on his face, "Good choice, he has this one on every single time!"

I let out a short laugh but stopped myself when I heard the music begin to play, it blared out "_Dead or Alive_" and I smiled at the thought of my dad singing along to it, he always loved this song! I couldn't begin to imagine what Rian was going through, seeing his dad this way but I wasn't prepared to forget about his dad yet. He had to be stopped and maybe that meant that a life had to be lost…


	6. Chapter 6

The drive went quickly after the music started playing and due to the lack of songs on the tape, Mylo soon knew the words to half of the songs! Dean obviously knew them all and I could occasionally see Sam miming along to "_Dead or Alive_" as he continued his late night drive.

Once we were at the warehouse, Mylo hopped into the seat I was sitting in and Dean and I clambered out of the car with the bag of weapons. A quick nod from Dean sent Sam continuing the drive down the road until I saw him turn off at the end and the car was out of sight.

"They're going to a restaurant not far from here, Mylo will be fine," Dean stated in his low, croaky voice that snapped me out of my daze.

"Okay, let's go!" I nodded reassuringly, more to make myself more confident instead of Dean.

We silently stepped into the first room of the building and Dean set the bag on the floor to take out what we needed. The room was small with no windows so the only light we had was from the blazing sign outside and the flashlights Dean had brought. There were a few broken chairs and an ancient desk with files spread out across it.

I crouched down opposite Dean and tried to help, even though I didn't have a clue what we needed.

"Okay, you take these two and this," Dean said as he handed me two guns and a small knife, "Oh and you will need some extra salt, just in case!"

"Okay, thanks!" I exclaimed as I set the knife in my back pocket and one of the guns in the pocket of my hoodie.

"Right, this is going to be dangerous. We don't know anything about this guy so stay with me! You never go off on your own and you never try and handle things on your own. I will stay in front and if I tell you to do something, you do it with no questions asked, okay?" Dean explained in a firm, deep tone.

"Okay!" I lied, I was never one to follow orders but I wasn't going to admit that before a hunt.

"Let's go," Dean rose from his position and walked to the door of the room that would lead us further inside.

With one last look at the outside, I stood up and followed his path into the warehouse where the demon would be waiting.

We entered into the biggest room, where I was in the dream when I first saw this place. It looked exactly the same as before and just as abandoned as I had seen. Dean scanned all of the files and drawers in the room to find any clues but he never once lost his sight of me for more than thirty seconds with his glances in my direction. I stood frozen to my spot until I saw the shadow from the opposite side of the room in the exact same place as I had seen it before. I silently made my way towards it and gestured to Dean who began to lead the way towards the door. He looked like a wolf about to hunt his prey, with each step full of care and precision to make sure no noise was made. I tightened my hold around the gun and followed his path. I focused on the strong muscles in his back that rose and fell with each steady breath he took until we stopped and took cover behind a set of drawers near the door.

"Stay quiet," Dean whispered as he peered over the top of the drawers to see our enemy.

I replied with a light nod and followed Dean's stare to where _his_ silhouette was the only thing visible to us. I found myself clutching to the drawers so tight that I could see the small bones in my hands moving through my skin.

Before I knew it Dean rose up and held his gun firmly in front of him in the direction of the demon controlled man.

"Stop, we can talk to him first!" I hissed to a fierce Dean that stood next to me, his face was completely focused on the task ahead and in his eyes it was nearly complete.

He looked at me with a mixture of confusion and annoyance before he spoke up, "Demon dad, show yourself!" he yelled with is gun still focused on the now moving silhouette.

As he came out into the light of the room, I could see him again and I felt like it was all another dream. I almost wished it was when I saw the pit eyes in his face that sent shivers down my spine. Dean's hand found mine and our fingers laced together as we faced the demon.

"Starla, you have made things worse for yourself!" Rian's dad shook his head as though I had been part of a scheme all along.

"Maybe things became a little boring!" I smirked as I stepped back to make the distance between us a little bigger.

"I tried to tell you before!" He shrugged as he threw his arm across the room and sent Dean with it.

Dean was now pinned up against the wall and struggling for air. His body was desperately trying to escape the invisible grasp that kept him there as I ran across the room to help. It didn't take long for Rian's dad to send me flying across the opposite side of the room and colliding into a stack of tables and chairs that hadn't been used in years.

I sat up coughing and spluttering out the dust that had found its way into my nose and mouth and looked across the room. There I saw the demon circling a now tied up Dean with a long, sharp knife in his hand.

"DEAN!" I screamed at the top of my lungs as I tried to clamber out of the mess that crowded me.

Rian's dad just turned around and smirked viciously before planting the blade of the knife into Dean's forearm and creating a fine cut that became fresh with blood in seconds. Dean gritted his teeth in pain as the demon did the same to his other arm and continued to swap arms until I was strong enough to push free and stand up.

"You bitch!" I shouted as I grabbed my salt filled gun and charged toward the villain before me.

He quickly swung his arm out and I crashed to the floor to then be greeted by him towering over me and pushing the sharp blade into my throat and slowly blocking off my air. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't hear anything and all I could see was the horrible grin of Rian's father above me. My life was slowly slipping away from me and all of the hope I had gained over this past week had vanished from my grasp. I knife pressed further into my neck and I had to use all my strength to slowly move my hand round and grab the gun I had put into my back pocket. My hand tightened round it and I quickly pulled it out and shot blindly at the man who was slowly killing me. Many shots had no luck until one hit and I could hear the loud cry of Rian's dad as he fell to the floor and some sort of black smoke flew into the air and out of the warehouse. A pair of strong, comforting arms clasped around me and I fell into them like a weak child.

"You're okay, I'm here, he's gone!" Dean kept repeating into my ear as I curled into his body helplessly.

We stayed like that for around 10 minutes until we got up and moved to sit against one of the empty walls of the room. The calm wind outside was the only sound around and it was peaceful to know the demon was gone. I couldn't help but shudder every time I thought about the lifeless body that lay on the floor until Dean had taken it away. I had killed him, he was innocent without that demon and I shot him.

"You're gonna be okay. It will take time but you will be okay!" Dean commented, clearly recognising how horrified I was at myself.

"Maybe it won't be that simple for me!" I replied bluntly even though I knew he was only trying to help.

"You had to kill him; he would've killed you, then me and gone on to kill a lot more people!" Dean stated, trying to make me feel better about it.

"He was an innocent man, isn't there any way you can kill a demon without killing the person?" I questioned, hoping the answer would be positive.

"Yes, there are rituals you can do but that demon was far too awake and prepared for us to ever attempt to do that!" Dean explained truthfully.

I couldn't find anything to say so I just nodded and stared out into the empty room ahead of me.

"You shouldn't have tried to save me!" Dean said as his hand brushed over the bruise that had formed on my head from being flung across the room.

"You would've died Dean!" I exclaimed, turning to face him.

"You could've gotten yourself killed!"

"Maybe it was worth the risk," As soon as the words escaped my mouth, I wished they had stayed in and I couldn't help but feel annoyed at myself for not controlling what I say.

Dean's eyes met my own and he slowly leaned in to catch my lips with his for a few seconds before he pulled away and shook his head.

"This can't happen!" He declared as he shook his head and met my eyes again.

"What are you talking about?" I questioned, puzzled.

"You are meant to be with Rian, you love him. We should get back and…"

"I don't love Rian, he betrayed me! Why should I forgive him?"

"Because it is fate! You have to be together, that's the way it works!" He shrugged his shoulders and nodded to reassure himself.

"Since when did you ever believe in fate Dean?" I asked firmly, why was he being such a jerk about it?

He didn't have an answer and I stood in frustration and brushed off the dust from my jeans.

"Well since I'm not a girl who wants to be lied to, I am going outside to find Sam and go back to the motel!" I stated as I began to walk out of the old warehouse and onto the streets of Nebraska.

"The truth is… I don't want to hurt you!" Dean shouted after me with a hurt tone in his voice.

I turned back to see him stood at the doorway with his brows furrowed together and his eyes less stern than they usually are.

"I travel the whole country with this flipping job and I can't trust that I will return! I don't want to start something with you if there is a chance you could get hurt!" He explained as he walked over to me but still left some distance between us.

"Hey, I am strong enough to look after myself Dean! And why wouldn't I be coming with you anyway?" I closed the gap between us and held his hands in my own as I looked into his deep eyes.

He rested his forehead against mine and smiled lightly, "Course you would be with us!" he whispered quietly.

I smiled back and we turned to walk into the night streets to wait for Sam.

I know Rian would try to have some explanation for everything and a part of me felt guilty for getting together with Dean so soon after everything with Rian but I wasn't ready to listen to Rian's crap excuses and I don't think I ever will be.


	7. Chapter 7

Sam didn't take long to arrive and he pulled up with a big grin on his face that was replicated onto Mylo's.

"You two look like you had fun!" Dean exclaimed as he opened the back door to let me in to the car.

"Same to you!" Sam laughed as he gestured to our hands that were still laced together.

"Oh shut up Sam!" Dean shouted as he shut the door and jogged round the other side of the car to sit next to me.

"Be careful Starla! This one can be a heart-breaker!" Sam shouted as he started the car, only to receive a hit round the head from Dean who shook his head and sat back.

"We went to the bar!" Mylo chirped up as he wriggled in his seat with excitement.

"What the hell! You took my brother to a bar?!" I exclaimed with shock.

"Well what else was I meant to do? It was his idea anyway!" Sam joked as he ruffled Mylo's hair and smiled.

"SAMMY! I wanted to be the first one to do that!" Dean exaggerated and we all laughed.

Maybe this wasn't the ideal life or the ideal job but it was good enough if I had Dean by my side.

We reached the motel soon enough and the darkness seeping through the windows of our room told us that Rian had left.

"Sometimes guys aren't as good as they make out to be!" Dean shrugged as he clambered out of the car and came round to help Mylo out.

I nodded and got out myself as we all began to walk up to the motel.

Sam pulled out the key and unlocked the door as he pushed through and sighed at the cold air of the room.

Mylo rubbed his tired eyes and I lifted him up and walked him over to one of the beds where I lay him down and wrapped him up as best I could in the small blanket.

Sam collapsed onto another of the beds and pulled the blanket over him to warm him up a little.

"You would think they would have some sort of heating in this place!" Dean grunted and tried to sort out the radiator.

"It was only like $10 a night Dean!" I sighed and wrapped my arms tightly around me, shivering at the cold.

I pulled off my shoes and walked over to one of the free beds where I pulled back the freezing covers and hopped in.

"Good night Dean!" I whispered as I heard him walking over.

"What, no good night kiss?" Dean questioned, faking a hurt expression.

I propped up onto my elbows and he sat down on the side of my bed. I leaned in slowly and kissed his rough lips lightly before pulling away and smiling.

"Better?" I sighed and shivered again at the cold.

"Hmmm… you look frozen!" Dean shuffled up closer to me and pulled my into a warm embrace.

I smiled but it wasn't enough to hide the freezing temperatures of the room.

"I will survive, after what happened tonight I don't think I am going to be one to die from the cold in a hotel room!" I giggle as I pulled the blanket up over us and snuggled in closer.

"Not if you have me!" Dean replied before I rested my head onto his chest and fell into a deep, calm sleep.

I woke up to the sound of radio music and laughter filling the room. A scent of eggs and bacon immediately hit my nose as I sat up and stretched.

"Rise and shine Starla!" Dean exclaimed over the music that boomed loudly. He was stationed at the kitchen counter as he fried the bacon happily.

"Morning," I grunted as I stood up and walked over to where he stood.

"Where are Sam and Mylo?" I asked as I wrapped my arms around him from behind and rested my head on the muscles in his back.

"Mylo is peeing and Sammy is still asleep! I will wake him up actually," Dean stated as he handed me the pan of bacon and jogged over to Sam's bed with a bottle of water in his hand.

I grinned as the idea of what was about to happen appeared in my head and I watched as Dean positioned himself so that the water would shoot right into Sam's open mouth.

It only took seconds before Sam shot up, spluttering out the water that had trickled down the back of his throat.

"Dean, what the hell?!" He managed to croak out as he wiped away some excess water from his mouth.

"Morning Sammy!" Mylo chirped as he ran across from the bathroom and jumped onto Sam's stomach.

Sam groaned at the sudden weight even though Mylo was light and smiled at the little boy.

"Did you tell him to call me that?" Sam questioned to his older brother as he adjusted himself in the warmth of his bed.

"Hey," Dean shrugged, "I had to find some way of getting you back for taking him to a bar didn't I?"

"Come on boys, enough bickering! Breakfast is ready!" I exclaimed only to receive three hungry boys charging at me to get the best bit of bacon.

This past week may have been difficult and dangerous but with a plate of breakfast in front of me and the three boys I cared about, could I really complain? Rian could find his own life, as long as he didn't cross paths with me again.

After breakfast, we all got ready pretty quickly and planned to head out for the day after everything that happened yesterday. Dean took Mylo out to show him the car and Sam and I were left in the room to check we hadn't left anything.

"Thanks for looking after Mylo yesterday! He seems to really like you!" I smiled to fill the silence.

"Ah, don't worry about it! He is a great kid! I should be thanking you really, you saved Dean's life!"

"And he saved mine!" I replied quietly, thinking about how Dean had saved me more than he would ever know. He saved me when his lips captured mine in that warehouse and he saved me when we walked hand in hand.

"Come on, I don't think we have left anything!" Sam exclaimed cheerfully as he jogged outside and up towards the car.

"Just the memories!" I whispered lightly, I had come to like this place. It had some sort of safety for us, even if we were only here to kill a demon…

Our day trip took us to a mall that was fairly busy and buzzing with people going about their daily business. After finding a place to park, we all clambered out of the car and walked to the main area of the centre.

Sam and Dean walked in front whilst I stayed behind them with Mylo.

"You okay Mylo?" I asked as I turned my gaze away from a beautiful little boutique and towards my brother.

"I'm great! These days have been amazing!" He joyfully exclaimed as he hopped on through the mall.

"It hasn't been the best bonding experience!" I sighed at the thought.

"Yes it has! I learnt that you are the bravest girl I know and I can face anything if I have you!" He grinned happily into my face before running off and jumping up onto Sam's back.

What he said made me think, not about my bravery but about the people I had with me. If I had them I knew I could face anything and I know that they are the people that make me brave, strong and ready for this new adventure.

We spent the morning going into shops Mylo found and got lunch at a nearby café before Sam and Mylo spotted an arcade they wanted to go in and Dean and I walked hand in hand around the shopping centre.

I split off from his continued walk when I found a small shop that sold lots of different things. Yet, there was one thing that caught my eye as I peered through the window. Sitting on the counter was a weaved wristband with the letter S in an aqua colour. I was so caught up in the accessory that I didn't realise Dean run up behind me and rest his head on my shoulder as he followed my gaze to the item.

"Do you like it?" He questioned as he snuggled his face further into my shoulder and made me giggle.

"It's beautiful, it reminds me of one my Dad bought my Mum when they had me, and he said it was to show he would always be with her!" I smiled, remembering the countless times my mother had told me that story.

"Well come on then!" He jumped up and grabbed my hand as he entered the store and immediately found the bracelet.

"Dean honestly you don't…" I could finish before he went to the counter and automatically paid for the wristband before returning to me with a grin on his face.

"Now, you can wear this for exactly the same reason your mother does!" He explained calmly as he loosened the band to fit around my wrist and tightened it to the perfect shape.

"Dean… I…" Before i could reply, Mylo was at the door and excited for us to come after him.


	8. Chapter 8

One and a half years later…

"This sounds like a pretty good case Sammy!" Dean exclaimed as he pulled a beer out of the fridge and cracked it open.

"See, I told you!" Sam grunted as he began opening up endless windows on his laptop to learn more and more about the case.

"We should head to the church first; there might be someone who knows something about it there! I will just put out the trash and then we can go!" I confirmed before grabbing the full trash bag and opening the door to receive a huge gust of fresh air in my face.

"Don't blow away!" Dean shouted from across the room as I shut the door behind me and brushed my pale fingers over the wristband that wrapped around my wrist. It now accompanied a similar one with dark red stitching in the shape of a D. I was given it from the one person in the world you would least expect to be romantic- Dean Winchester!

I jumped down the few stairs we had outside our cheap motel room and jogged to the bin at the edge of the car park to throw away our rubbish. The open lid sent a strong scent my way and I scrunched up my nose and the disgusting smell. It was a fairly empty day outside and nobody was around, which made the creaking swing a few metres away seem slightly concerning. My hands freed the bin bag and I quickly threw down the lid of the bin.

Then I saw him, across from the bin, less than a few feet from me stood the boy I hated most in this world. Rian glared at me with his big eyes I had known for so long before they flickered back and a horrible black pit replaced them.

"What are you doing here Rian?" I questioned, barely able to breathe.

"That's not the welcome I expected! What happened to how have you been these days?" Rian tutted and began to circle around the only thing that stood between me and him.

"Stay away from me!" I gritted my teeth and walked further backwards, towards our room.

"I wanted to ask you something, let's just say it is a little favour!" Rian snarled as he continued to walk closer towards me.

"Why would I do anything for you?" I spat, moving round a few cars that scattered themselves around the carpark.

"You killed my father! You sat there and watched the life slip out of him and you did nothing!" growled the boy I used to trust so much.

"There was nothing we could've done and you know it! He was going to kill us if we didn't stop him!"

"SHUT UP!" He roared as he launched his body towards me and fought me to the ground.

I elbowed his rib cage and swung my body from under his grasp, allowing myself to charge towards the room at full speed, without looking back.

"This isn't over!" He shouted as he pushed himself up and left.

I shot into the room and slammed the door behind me, resting my head back to catch my breath.

"What happened? Are you okay?" Dean questioned, scanning my body to check for cuts or injuries before he looked into my face with the most concerned look I had ever seen.

"I… he… Rian!" I whispered as I finally began to get my breathing back.

"What? Where is he? I can't believe he came back!" Dean said, completely shocked, as he held my face in his hands and nodded to reassure me.

"No, no he is probably gone by now!" I looked down at my feet to hide the wet tears that began to form in my eyes.

"We will find him, I can promise you that!" Sam stated firmly as he rose from his seat and shot a glance to Dean who nodded, their plan was already forming.

The day went past slowly with constant research into Rian's whereabouts and the case, found earlier, being held off until we were sure that Rian wouldn't harm us anymore. Sam was using his laptop that had endless windows opened to find any sort of clue to where he would be. Dean was using the old book his dad got him and I was left on my laptop with nothing really to find.

Eventually, I found myself scanning through photos of us three that had been taken over the past year of us working together. Mylo showed up in a few of them, he left us for home straight after the first hunt I ever did after many explanations from me about this life not being safe for him. I usually get photos or texts from him through my phone about school or life at home but it isn't the same as having him here, bouncing around. My hand stopped moving to the next photo when I saw one from the night I first got engaged to Dean. He is the person I would least expect to propose and he certainly shocked me…

_The only text I had got from Dean was to meet him at the motel at 6pm so as I approached the room, a sense of fear arose inside of me. Is he possessed? Is he in danger? I couldn't put it off any longer and I walked right up to the door and knocked three times, as I usually did. _

_He automatically opened it and I found him to be dressed in a casual top and jeans. The grin on his face told me he certainly wasn't a demon and I entered the room that was filled with dim lights._

_"__Dean what is this?" I questioned, completely confused as to what was actually going on._

_"__I wanted to make this special but I know you're not the girl to want a fancy restaurant so I kept it simple! Welcome to movie marathon!" Dean exclaimed as he stepped away from the door and revealed the room to be set up for a movie night with pillows, blankets, popcorn and plenty of food and drink._

_"__I can't believe you did this! It is amazing" I exclaimed, completely surprised at the effort he had gone to._

_"__What are you waiting for?" He took my hand in his and led me over to the cosy spot set up in front of the TV._

_I could see plenty of films laid out, including some of my favourites like the Divergent series and the Hunger Games series. He had even found the 100 seasons that I absolutely adore!_

_"__You got my favourites!" I exclaimed as I lifted the DVDs from their place on the floor._

_"__Of course I did! You can choose what to watch first!" He eyed the DVDs expectantly and I saw his cheeks turn slightly red. He almost seemed nervous!_

_After about a minute of deciding, I finally settled on the 100 season 2 and I gestured it to him for approval. Dean replied with an eager nod as I clicked open the case and found the CD inside. What shocked me the most was the woven band that lay right in the centre…_

_Dean lightly took the DVD case away from me and set it back on the ground before he took out the band and held my hand._

_"__Starla, you are the single, most amazing girl I know and I couldn't have got through the past few months without you. I don't need guns or knives in a fight because I know I have you by my side. So, I wanted to give you this to make sure you know I love you" Dean smiled, staring into my eyes the whole time._

_"__Dean I can't believe this, I love you too!" I grinned as I threw my arms around him and burrowed my head into his shoulder._

_After a little while, he pulled back and gently pushed the band onto my wrist and tightening it before brushing it with his fingers._

"I've got him!" Sam exclaimed, taking me out of my daze.

Dean and I were straight away by his side as he opened up a camera screening, taken from some CCTV cameras.

"Okay, so looking at the cameras from outside the parking lot, it shows he came in this car," Sam explained as he pointed to a frozen image of Rian climbing out of a car, "Then after your chat, he drove away in this same car. I tracked it down and it has been staying a few blocks down. He seems to be staying in the same area so I figure we give it a shot and see what is going on!"

Dean nodded with a firm expression on his face as he grabbed his keys and headed to the door.

"Well, you can't just stand there! I am not letting this idiot hurt you anymore! I am putting a damn end to this!" Dean stated as he pulled open the door and walked down to his Impala.

Dean seriously seemed to know this place as we zoomed down road after road until we reached an old house where we stopped and all hopped out.

Sam went round to the back of the car and grabbed out three guns and three knives. We were definitely prepared.

I ran right over to the door and tried to see if it would open before I shook my head at the boys and smashed it down with a few hard kicks.

"Nice work!" Dean smirked as he peered into the ancient building and stepped inside of the first corridor.

We silently followed as Dean signalled for me to go left and Sam to head upstairs whilst he went forward.

The room I entered looked like a living room put it had completely aged with time and it had become almost beautiful. If I didn't have a job to do, I would stop to take a look around but I carried on towards the archway that joined the living room to a kitchen until I paused and saw a silhouette, positioned at the window of the kitchen. My whole body froze, I could think, I could breath. My mind went blank; I had to focus on standing up straight. Then it turned and those eyes burned into my body as I saw his face… Rian.

"You decided to show up then!" Rian snarled as he folded his hands behind his back and took a step away from the window.

"I guess I couldn't help myself!" I replied, gaining confidence and standing taller.

"You know, you didn't really need to ruin my door, I would've easily opened it with a polite knock!"

"Well, I have never been very good with being patient!" I stated as Dean ran into the room with his gun raised at Rian.

"You son of a…" Dean shouted as his fingers began to close in on the trigger.

"DEAN, STOP!" I screamed but I didn't need to as the black, vicious cloud I had seen so much this past year, made its way out of Rian's body and into the air around us. I couldn't tell where it had gone but I didn't actually care as Rian's body slumped to the ground and fell into a prepared Dean's arms.

I ran over to them and crouched down on the opposite side of Rian.

"He won't make it, his body is too weak," Dean admitted as he shuffled a bit to make sure he didn't drop the almost lifeless body.

I could see Rian was awake, he was in pain and I knew it. I didn't want him to suffer; I couldn't put him through that even after everything he has done.

"You will be fine!" I whispered as I brushed Rian's hair away from his face and planted a kiss on his forehead before I looked over at Dean and stated "End it."

After that, I stood up and walked towards the door where Sam stood silently. I couldn't face seeing his life end. As I heard the silver knife pull out of its case, I couldn't control the vicious tears that escaped my body. Soon I was surrounded in Sam's arms as he comforted me whilst Dean finished the job. Dean took his time before he came over to us and grasped me into an embrace as well.

We walked out in complete silence and the car ride to the motel was no different…


End file.
